Chapter 94

I'm sorry for the delay in updating...

"......!"

In response to Mist and Handsome appearing behind me, I instinctively moved my hand towards the dagger.

The fact that I hadn't noticed Mist's presence until they spoke from behind me made my grip on my hand tighten.

Despite the only door to this room being within my line of sight, I had no idea when Mist and the others had entered.

It was as if they had teleported in.

Everyone in the room had a serious expression, indicating that it wasn't just me who felt this way.

Only Ronaldo maintained his usual calm demeanor, while my master glared at Mist with undisguised irritation.

Even under such a glare, Mist remained composed.

"Isn't this treatment a bit harsh for someone who has come to deal with the dungeon rampage?"

"Shut up. This is a natural reaction to someone with such a theatrical entrance."

With that, my master looked at Mist's feet with a look of disgust.

It was then that I noticed a magic circle-like pattern etched there.

The conversation about the Elven installation magic I had just heard came to mind.

Is this an installation magic?

The thought crossed my mind, but I quickly dismissed it.

I had a sense of déjà vu about the magic circle.

No, it wasn't just a sense of déjà vu.

I couldn't possibly mistake what it was.

As if to drive the reality home, my master spat out the words.

"You're quite perceptive. How many of those magic circles, no, teleportation arrays, have you set up within the guild?"

...Yes, the pattern etched at Mist and Handsome's feet was a teleportation array used to enter the dungeon from the labyrinth city.

A teleportation array said to be created by lost technology from long ago.

Seeing Mist use it as if it were a convenient tool, I realized anew just how abnormal this Elf was.

"Lies, to use lost technology so easily...!"

Laila's voice, filled with shock, reached my ears.

Feeling the astonishment in her voice, I realized that this teleportation array must have conveyed the threat of Mist to Laila far more vividly than any explanation we could have given.

And the threat of Mist had also intensified for me.

Seeing the existence of the teleportation array, I reaffirmed this in my heart.

If we were attacked from an isolated place using a teleportation array, we wouldn't be safe either.

Perhaps from now on, I should avoid being alone.

At that moment, the sound of someone running suddenly echoed.

For a moment, I panicked at the presence of Mist and the others, but there was no problem.

The moment I noticed the footsteps, the magic circle at Mist's feet glowed brightly, and Mist and Handsome disappeared.

The footsteps grew closer, and the next moment, the door was flung open.

Marnel appeared in the doorway.

With a look of anxiety on his face, Marnel said,

"A, an adventurer who fled has just returned to the labyrinth city! A super-difficult monster is about to arrive..."

His words were broken and disjointed due to his anxiety.

But even those words were enough to show that the situation had worsened significantly.

"A super-difficult monster!"

With a rare look of anxiety, my master told Marnel,

"Take us to that adventurer as quickly as possible."

"Y-Yes!"

Seeing the unease on the face of the top-tier adventurer, Marnel ran off, and we followed him out of the room.

As we followed Marnel, my master asked Ronaldo with a tense expression,

"Has a super-difficult monster ever appeared on the first day of a dungeon rampage before?"

"Not that I know of."

The calm words of my master and Ronaldo.

But their voices were filled with unhidden anxiety...

◇◆◇

The exhausted adventurer told us what had happened after leaving the labyrinth city.

Apparently, about two hours after leaving the labyrinth city, the adventurers encountered a battle with monsters.

At first, they fought well, but the formation quickly collapsed when a top-tier adventurer was defeated by an Ogre.

Then, the super-difficult monster Fenrir appeared.

Seeing this, the leader, a god of war with a great sword, fled, and the other adventurers followed suit, fleeing to the neighboring town.

Thanks to the monsters chasing after them, the adventurers managed to escape back to the labyrinth city.

After hearing this, we put the fleeing adventurer in a cell and gathered in the room again.

However, not only was Mist, who had left, not back, but Ziek and the others were also absent.

The fleeing adventurer had caused a commotion in front of the labyrinth city, and the news of the super-difficult monster had spread to the other adventurers.

As a result, Ziek and the others were now calming the agitated adventurers.

This was a consequence of the guild staff fleeing.

Without someone to manage the adventurers, Ziek and the others had to take on the role.

Narseena and I couldn't calm the adventurers, so we would have to leave it to Ziek and the others.

Considering that Ziek and the others were indispensable as combatants, we should avoid exhausting them if possible.

We needed to come up with a plan.

I was lost in thought when Ronaldo's words brought me back to reality.

"Hey, Laust. Can you hold off Fenrir on your own?"

"......What?"

I was taken aback by those words.

Holding off a mutated super-difficult monster alone—anyone would think it was reckless.

I couldn't believe that Ronaldo, of all people, had suggested it.

Instinctively, I was about to ask Ronaldo what he meant, but my master, who was visibly angry, spoke first.

"Don't be ridiculous, Ronaldo. Are you trying to waste valuable combatants?"

"If we preserve these valuable combatants pointlessly, we'll all die here."

"Is sending someone to fight a super-difficult monster a sensible use of combatants?"

"No, that's not true. But if we can't do it, the labyrinth city will only last a few days. Larma must understand that, right?"

"......Damn."

As my master and Ronaldo exchanged harsh words, I finally realized the gravity of the situation.

Whether I could hold off the super-difficult monster was a gamble, given that my master and the others hadn't seen my current fighting capabilities.

But the situation was so dire that we had to take that gamble.

I realized this at that moment.

...No, perhaps I had already understood it.

I just couldn't accept it.

"......!"

Looking at my tightly clenched hand, a strong sense of unease began to assert itself in my chest.

I finally realized that I had been feeling a deep fear without even realizing it.

The situation was so dire that it was inevitable.

To avoid this, I had to hold off the mutated super-difficult monster.

Just as I was about to speak, a teleportation array appeared on the floor in front of me.

Seeing it, I realized Mist had returned.

I wondered where he had been.

My master seemed to feel the same way, as he spat out his frustration the moment Mist appeared.

"Where have you been? Do you know what the situation is now?"

"Yes. The mutated Fenrir has appeared."

Mist answered my master's question without hesitation, causing my master to bristle.

I felt the same way.

Mist's demeanor was so calm that it seemed he didn't understand the dire situation.

Looking around at us, Mist smiled as if he had caught us off guard and said,

"Just follow me. We can handle even a mutated Fenrir."

As if in response to Mist's words, the teleportation array at his feet spread to our feet and began to glow.

"What!? What are you doing!?"

In response to my master's shocked exclamation, Mist closed one eye and said,

"Didn't I say it before? I came to deal with the dungeon rampage."

Realizing that Mist knew something that allowed him to remain calm even in this dire situation, my master, though still irritated, fell silent.

Satisfied, Mist nodded and activated the teleportation array.

"Then, let's go. –To activate the labyrinth city's walls."